


two explorers in the dark

by savedlatin



Category: Fall Out Boy
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Comfort/Angst, F/M, Gen, Love Confessions, Mutual Pining, Slow Burn, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-01
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-13 13:35:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,227
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29776941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/savedlatin/pseuds/savedlatin
Summary: "two explorers in the dark, making maps and drawing charts."in which two people find their way to each other.
Relationships: Patrick Stump/You
Kudos: 2





	two explorers in the dark

**Author's Note:**

> this is written purely for catharsis and to quell my boredom, and i thought other people may be able to curb their boredom by reading it too :P
> 
> some notes about the fic:  
> -slowburn college au  
> -patrick, reader and joe are 22, pete/andy are 26  
> -this will mostly be told from the reader’s perspective, but there are a few instances from patrick’s  
> -about 10-12 chapters, all of which vary in length  
> -there is no structure to this story, i just wrote it for fun. just something to keep in mind!
> 
> if you do happen to read this nonsense, thank you and hope you enjoy! -ao3 user savedlatin (◡‿◡✿)

surely it was loneliness.  
surely it was boredom.  
surely it was because he was simply nice to me and nothing more.  
maybe i just get crushes easily?

i sighed in defeat.

“hello?” a hand waved in front of my face, taking me out of my deep thought. i jumped, turning to see a dark haired boy staring back at me, his eyebrows raised in apparent concern. leaning over the center console in his car, pete laughed a bit. “you look kind of freaked out. are you okay?” i swallowed.

"yeah. i was just thinking about the assignments i have due this week is all."  
"oh! well, good luck."

i gave him a thumbs up and thanked him, trying my best to smile through the lame excuse i gave him. we left it at that, much to my relief.

as pete and i walked to the venue from his car, he began excitedly talking about the show his band was performing that night. “the shows are always really fun, the kids are always great,” he said, a grin on his face. “can’t wait for you to experience one finally!” he slung an arm around my shoulder playfully. i laughed awkwardly, looking up at him. “you guys will be great. you always are,” i beamed. 

as we entered the back door of the club, one of the other band members began walking toward us to get outside. i was expecting to see joe, only to be mistaken -- patrick stopped in front of us, hand on the back of his neck, blonde hair a bit messy, and glasses resting on his nose. “hey! i was just going to get some air,” he greeted, waving at us. i gave him a small grin and wave back from under pete’s arm, unsure of what to say. as he left to go outside, i quietly entered the club and shuffled out of my jacket, terribly aware of how nervous i had become around him.

after greeting joe and andy, i went to the bathroom to calm down. splashing water on my face, i sighed silently to myself. i used to be fine around patrick, but over the last few months i had begun to notice a shift in how i felt about him. i wasn’t sure what to make of the situation. sure he was very sweet and was far from unattractive in my eyes, but was that really worth the cost of years of friendship?

i resolved to be as reasonable as i could -- crushes were normal, so all i had to do was wait it out until i got past it. it seemed doable; i planned to treat patrick as i would any other friend and eventually it would probably go away. maybe i could ask friends if they had anyone they’d like to set me up with to help get my mind off him. i exited the bathroom, convinced i could move on from these feelings smoothly. 

\---

i had never seen them perform live before; i’d stopped by practices on my way home and listened in on their song writing sessions, but i hadn’t seen them purely in their element yet. they were more passionate about music than i was about most things, so i was intrigued to see what they were like performing.

when it was time for them to get on stage, i waved and wished them good luck. joe gave me a pat on the head in response, to which i stuck my tongue out at him as he turned to set up on stage. pete greeted the crowd, mentioning how he was was feeling especially good about the show and that night. as they began their first song, i turned my attention to the part of the crowd i could see from side stage. so many fans knew the lyrics word for word, their arms reaching out toward the yellow lights illuminating the room. 

drifting back toward the boys, i found my eyes stopping at patrick. even though i was trying to get over him as of 40 minutes prior, i figured it wouldn’t hurt to steal a few glances; no one could see me staring anyway. i scanned his face, searching for any sign that indicated what he might be thinking up there, but found nothing as his eyes were mostly covered by the shadow casted from his cap. according to joe, patrick avoided wearing his glasses on stage and pulled his hats down low when he had to perform, both of which were attempts to avoid looking directly at the faces in the crowd.

when hanging with friends, he always seemed to be more on the reserved side, more nervous than most. on stage however, watching him from where i was, i could see how into performing he was; his eyes shined in a way i didn’t see in casual settings. he looked...beautiful, almost.

i recoiled at the thought, discarding it to the trash can in my mind. can’t be thinking about a friend like that. i broke away from patrick and replied to a few texts instead to get my off it all as the boys did a bit of stage banter with the crowd. 

i tried my best to not linger on patrick for the rest of the show, still determined to keep our friendship intact.

\-- 

back in pete’s car with all the boys, pete asked me if i’d like to go home or if i’d like to come back to their apartment to “get drunk or something”. i mulled over my answer carefully. being inebriated around patrick didn’t seem like a great idea, but it had been a while since i slept over at the boys’ apartment, or had any fun with friends for that matter. would it really be so bad if i went?

i shook my head. “i don’t think i should…” i started, knowing it was in my best interest. no matter how much i wanted to just have a normal night with my friends, i had to accept for now that it wasn’t possible until i moved past my feelings for patrick. joe frowned in disappointment. “c’mon, it’s friday night!” he argued. the rest of the guys chimed in, trying to encourage me to have fun and worry about school later. after enough affirmation that i was completely sure i wanted to stay home, they relented. the rest of the car ride was silent save for a few side conversations as pete drove to my house. i tried my best to just think of anything else besides the fact that patrick was sitting next to me in the back of the car, grateful the night was coming to a close.

pete eventually pulled into my driveway, saying goodbye as he came to a full stop. “see you monday?” he asked, reminding me of our group’s plans to go to the movies together. i nodded. suddenly, i felt a hand rest on my knee. looking to my left, my eyes met patrick’s. he smiled. “bye!” he said, patting my knee. i could feel my body stiffening in surprise from his touch. at a loss for words, i abruptly said “yeah!” and left the car immediately, speedwalking to my house. 

once in my room, i let out a sigh of relief and then silently screamed into a pillow.


End file.
